5 Steps to Greater Financial Security … AND a Better Life!
February 5th, 2009 by Bob Bly
No one expects bad things ? and by bad, I mean catastrophically bad ? to happen to them.
Yet terrible tragedies happen to people who didn?t expect them every day of the year.
You can?t take a vaccine to immunize yourself against ill fortune.
But you can prepare for disasters before they happen.
That way, when they strike, you ? and your family ? will survive ? with the minimum hardship possible.
In particular, here are 5 things I think you should do now to protect yourself against future problems and headaches:
1. Become financially secure.
Money can protect you against many disasters, and make many others easier to bear.
How much wealth should you strive to accumulate?
I recommend a goal of $2 million in liquid assets.
Reason: $2 million invested at 10% annual return produces an income of $200,000.
If a catastrophic illness or other crisis prevents you from working, you can just live off your investments.
And if your business fails or your career derails, you likewise can live off your investment income.
2. Buy life insurance.
Until you accumulate the $2 million, you need to leave an estate big enough to ensure a comfortable life for your family ? preferably, without forcing your spouse to sell the house and make the kids move.
Although a $2 million estate would be ideal, your spouse can probably get by nicely even with a million dollars in term life insurance on you.
Tip: buy this life insurance while you are young, before you have a serious illness.
Should you get sick, and then decide to get life insurance, the cost will be prohibitive.
3. Buy health insurance.
More than 46 millions Americans do not have health insurance.
They are gambling their family?s entire financial future.
One serious illness can quickly wipe out your life savings.
Get health insurance now. If you can?t afford a private policy, join a group that offers discount coverage to members.
Tip: buy your insurance first. Then select doctors from the HMO?s list of approved physicians.
That way, your doctor visits are covered by your plan, greatly reducing your health care costs.
4. Create sources of passive income.
What happens if you injure your back ? or get a debilitating illness ? and can?t work?
Disability payments are often limited.
A better idea is to start creating sources of passive income now ? sources that make money for you without you working.
One idea: investment real estate ? rental properties.
Another: start an Internet marketing business that generates thousands of dollars in weekly revenues without any activity on your part.
Here?s a Web site where I discuss how you can make a six-figure passive income online with your own Internet marketing business:
www.theinternetmarketingretirementplan.com
5. Live for the moment.
This may seem contrary to the idea of ?prepare for the future.?
But it?s really not.
When I was young, my father did not earn a high income, and constantly worried about money.
Yet my mother ?forced? him to take at least one nice week-long vacation a year.
By some standards, these were far from ?luxury? vacations ? although they were very nice — but the cost certainly made him nervous.
Eventually, my father became ill from a cancer that would cause his death at a too-early age.
But by then, both he and my mother had a lifetime of great memories from their travels all over the globe with family and friends.
Had he waited until retirement, they wouldn?t have shared those memories ? because he died before he was able to quit working.
This entry was posted on Thursday, February 5th, 2009 at 7:41 am and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
February 5th, 2009 at 9:46 am
Great post! I’m so glad people like you are helping others learn how to live better – and how to get there. We need more people learning this.
On the life insurance, if you’re under 40 and don’t have it yet, get it quickly. Most policies jump in premium when you turn 40.
February 5th, 2009 at 10:14 am
Dianacacy: also, once you get your first major illness, your chances of getting life at an AFFORDABLE rate are gone and will never return.
February 5th, 2009 at 3:44 pm
Nice post Bob, number 5 is so important to a happy and healthy life. It’s so easy to get caught up in the moment working on your business that weeks or even months can pass before you blink.
Always good to remind yourself you might not be here tomorrow so you better enjoy today.
Cheers
Kyle
February 5th, 2009 at 8:59 pm
[...] Original post: 5 Steps to Greater Financial Security … AND a Better Life! [...]
February 5th, 2009 at 10:32 pm
Those aren’t all “steps”, Bob, they’re just ideals.
Obviously everybody would love to have $2 million in the bank, full health and life insurance, passive income, and vacations each year. But, while I agree with many of your points, you don’t provide any guidelines for getting there.
What am I supposed to do with this article right now? How does it help me achieve what you advertised in the headline? It doesn’t.
You saying that $2 Million in the bank is the #1 step for financial security is like a basketball coach saying the #1 way to win a game is to outscore the opponent…no duh! But how about actual strategies (or a new headline)?
February 6th, 2009 at 7:25 am
Chad:I have all the information you need to increase your income to $200,000 a year or more in my books, audios, DVDs, and special reports. A short blog post like this tells you what to do, not how to do it. These ARE strategies or tips. What you are looking for are methods and techniques. You can learn more at http://www.ctcpublishing.net. But I do agree my post is an example of WHAT TO DO writing, not HOW TO.
February 6th, 2009 at 12:24 pm
Bob;
Your first step in the 5 steps to becoming financially secure is to “Become financially secure.” ????
Seems a little odd don’t you think?
Mike
February 6th, 2009 at 1:02 pm
Mike: I can see why you say that, but I don’t agree with you. I am defining what target dollar amount to accumulate to become financially secure, giving the reader a goal to work toward.
February 6th, 2009 at 3:13 pm
Hey Bob,
Thanks for the response. I do have a few of your books and value them tremendously, which is why you are one of the few copywriter-blogs I subscribe to.
With that said, #1 still stands out like a sore thumb. If you want to give the reader a goal to work toward when providing “5 steps to greater financial security”, then outline the goal before the list. Like you said, it’s a target dollar amount – not a step in the process of getting there.
-Chad
February 7th, 2009 at 5:49 am
[...] Bly presents 5 Steps to Greater Financial Security … AND a Better Life! posted at Bob Bly, Copywriter saying “No one expects bad things – and by bad, I mean [...]
February 8th, 2009 at 5:39 am
Good ideas, Bob. The only one I would slightly disagree with is “buy life insurance.” While that’s a great idea for many people, it’s not for all. Unless you’re directly responsible for others, you may not need it. Or, you may need just enough to pay end-of-life bills. OTOH, you may not need it even for that — depending on your situation.
February 9th, 2009 at 8:02 am
SH: Yes, you are right. You ONLY need life insurance if you are responsible for others. But I think all young people still should buy it, because at that age, you have not decided whether to have a family. If later you see you are not going to be responsible for anyone, you can always drop it.